Should We Re-Write History?

[Sarah Ellsworth]

So here's the question... Should we rewrite history? My sister Jill and I took our kids to Liberty Park to play in the water fountains last summer. I have been hestitating scrapping the pictures because it was so crowded that they didn't turn out too well. Then I got to thinking... what about using my good friend the clone stamp? In a matter of minutes I had erased all the kids from the park that I didn't know and love. Now my pictures are scrappable, but I'm left wondering if this is really the right thing to do. I find myself very tempted to do this sort of thing all the time. Shed a few pounds from this picture, erase a blemish or two from that picture. Is this one more joy of the digital world, or should I remember things as they really were instead of how I want to remember them? This turned out to be kind of a long thought, but I was just wondering what the general consensus is. Here are a couple of pictures of Liberty Park that I doctored up. Let me know your thoughts on the matter.

[lanz]

Sarah, it's Lana. I think I personally like the pictures without the other kids that you don't know.

[susiekline]

What of you put in one of the original pictures and included a comment about your cosmetic enhancements in the journaling? That would be a cool addition, I think!

[Kim Hansen]

Yes, that's the joy of photoshop--sometimes a picture is enhanced by "Painting" it up in photoshop no matter what you--touch up, clone, take out someone, shed a few pounds, tidy up, etc. To me that's progress, digital scrapbooking. Other times, yes, leave history in. Do it both ways and enjoy!

It's like somedays I wear makeup, others I don't.:)

It's so good to have you here Sarah with all of us and your dear sister, Jill.

[tpowers]

I think that this is the beauty of digital scrapbooking. You can enhance your photos to your taste.
By the way, how did you do that? I have some pictures that I could use that on.

[Sarah Ellsworth]

It was a lot of clone stamping. I just grabbed whatever was the closest color and covered over the extra kids. I also wanted to say sorry to everyone. It just occured to me that I posted a scrap-book related thread on the chit chat lounge. Oops. :o I'm still getting hang of this forum thing. Also. thanks to all of you for the warm welcome. This is fun.

[LucyLu]

I think each instance is different... I had some photos of my granddaughters christmas program... and I got rid the of the kids standing next to her in one photo so it was just her in front of the christmas tree... at my other grand childs program , it just was not possible to do that, so I just blurred them a bit ... I think your pictures turned out great without the crowd... go with it

[Shellie]

We end up remembering things the way we want to anyway so why not start there? :D

[Sarah Ellsworth]

Good point! We do remember what we want. This has been proven over and over when I get together with my sisters and we have four different memories of the exact same event! :yep: I think I may have to quote you on one of my doctored-up pages. Thanks.

[Jenny McDonald]

I agree with everyone. Do what you want to do because like Shellie said everyone remembers things differently.

[JoDee:)]

I think it's Awesome!!! Your picts look great!!!

[Alyson]

I think my nephew remembers things just because he's seen pictures of them in the scrapbook a bunch of times. Either that, or seeing the pictures a lot helps him remember.

If you do want to remember the fact that it was really busy, you could put one of the pics with lots of kids on the page as well. You could make it a little smaller and not the focus on the page, but I think this wouldn't be necessary. Only if that part of the memory is something you wanted to include.

I'm all about getting rid of blemishes on pictures of me. I know that I have the occasional big red zit, but I don't want to see it every time I look at this picture or that picture.

BTW, welcome to the forums Sarah! I'm so glad you have just dived right in!!

[a_c_danica]

I doctor things all the time! so go for it... I think it's about the memorie and like everyone said it's what you want to remember that sticks anyway

[chryslergreen]

This is an interesting thought. Here's my favorite answer:

Yes, that's the joy of photoshop--sometimes a picture is enhanced by "Painting" it up in photoshop no matter what you--touch up, clone, take out someone, shed a few pounds, tidy up, etc. To me that's progress, digital scrapbooking. Other times, yes, leave history in. Do it both ways and enjoy!

It's like somedays I wear makeup, others I don't.:)

It's so good to have you here Sarah with all of us and your dear sister, Jill.

because I'm so non-committal about my opinions! So I like Kim's response because it covers all the bases. They are YOUR pictures, do what you want with them!

[rizkid22]

You did a great job with the cloning Sarah! I think the pictures look better without all the other kids in them. BTW-Welcome!!

[Alishaw]

I use the general rule of reality...do you have that pimple everyday-no, then tomorrow that same photo would be without it-take it out. But when it comes to weight, hair color, etc it is a representation of who we are at that moment good or bad, and it motivates and triggers memories in us. So if we photoshop things too much our real memories will not match our photos and there's some discomfort in that.
But there is also a time and place for fun and skills like cloning random kids out of photos that could have all been in the bathroom when you took it ;) Have fun, just remember your purpose.

[April]

This is such an awesome post Sarah. I really like your thoughts. I would ABSOLUTELY clone out extra people. Changing the photos you are in to make you skinnier is crossing the line a bit but if it's a subtle change I think it's ok. Some pictures are more flattering than others so a little adjustment I think is ok.

So, I found my new photographer this morning. Trey Ratcliff. (http://www.treyratcliff.com/) He is amazing. He is into HDR photography which is a a "software technique of taking either one image or a series of images, combining them, and adjusting the contrast ratios to do things that are virtually impossible with a single aperture and shutter speed".

Here is his HDR tutorial: http://stuckincustoms.com/2006/06/06/548/
Here is what he says that I do agree with:

I’m a huge defender and believer of utilizing HDR as a technique for processing photos because I think it helps to evoke my actual memory of the scene. It’s just another tool that digital photographers can utilize depending on the situation. As opposed to the camera shutter and aperture, the human eye actually scans the scene at a very high rate of speed, constantly adjusting the pupil diameter to adjust the light and color levels. The pre-frontal cortex builds a quilt-like image that is comprised of millions of little bits, combined with neuron-connected memories of colors of objects. For example, when you look at a sunset, you can see all the colors of the clouds and sky, but you can also see all the colors of the trees and rocks in the foreground.

This is why, many times, people get home after a vacation and sigh at their pictures and tell their friends, “Well, it was much better when you were there.” So hey, it’s 2008, why not use software and the built-in ability of your camera to make a beautiful rendition of what YOU really saw? Some of us see life in HDR and some don’t… There’s a lot of HDR-hatahs out there… just ignore them… Don’t hate the playa, hate the game… or tell them to get back in their dark rooms with their smelly hands.

[crystalclark87]

I agree with changing them a bit; like Alisha said! If you are feeling bad about taking people out you could always do a guassian blur behind your focus. That way you aren't taking things out, you are just changing the focus. I change things all the time though.. I don't mind.. it is how I want to be remembered...

[Sarah Ellsworth]

Thanks for all of your input on this subject ladies. I really think Alisha's answer summed it up the best. Perhaps we could say that it's okay to enhance but not change, and where we draw the line is a matter of personal preference. I'll have to keep that in the back of my head because it's easy to overlook the flaws in others, but sometimes when it's a photo of me.... :)
April - that guy's photography is absolutely beautiful. It makes me want to try and be brave and buy a camera that's not just point-and-shoot. I don't know... I may be getting ahead of myself.

[Kelli West]

thank you so much for sharing that Photographer with us!! he is AMAZING!! I hope i can get there some day!!

[Alishaw]

I'm so templed to try this HDR thing but am afraid I'll fail miserably since I can barely take a picture as it is... Jamie, did you have to take classes or lessons?